The Japan Times - Gaza rescuers say Israeli strikes kill 24 after Hamas rejects truce proposal

The Palestinian militants' chief negotiator dismissed what he called Israel's "partial agreements" and called for a "comprehensive deal" to halt the 18-month-long war.

Khalil al-Hayya also urged international pressure to end Israel's complete blockade of Gaza that began on March 2.

The appeal comes after the United Nations warned of worsening conditions and shortages of medicine and other essentials for the Palestinian territory's 2.4 million besieged people.

Gaza's civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal said early Friday that crews had "recovered the bodies of 10 martyrs and a large number of wounded from the house of the Baraka family and the neighbouring houses" following Israeli strikes east of Khan Yunis in Gaza's south.

Civil defence reported at least 14 others killed in multiple Israeli strikes across the territory, including at least two strikes which hit tents sheltering displaced people.

Hundreds of thousands of people have taken refuge in such shelters while trying to escape from the war, which began when Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023.

The Israeli military has intensified its aerial bombardments and expanded ground operations in the Gaza Strip since resuming its offensive on March 18.

A previous ceasefire and hostage release deal began on January 19 but collapsed two months later. Israel wanted to extend the first phase, while Hamas insisted that negotiations be held for a second phase as outlined by former US President Joe Biden last year.

- 'Comprehensive deal' -

A source from Hamas told AFP that the militants sent a written response Thursday to mediators on Israel's proposal for a 45-day ceasefire. Israel had wanted the release of 10 living hostages held by the group, according to Hamas.

It also called for the freeing of 1,231 Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails and the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza.

A Hamas official said the proposal further sought Hamas's disarmament to secure a complete end to the war, a demand the group rejects.

"Partial agreements are used by (Israeli Prime Minister) Benjamin Netanyahu as a cover for his political agenda... we will not be complicit in this policy," Hayya said in a televised statement late Thursday.

He said Hamas "seeks a comprehensive deal involving a single-package prisoner exchange in return for halting the war, a withdrawal of the occupation from the Gaza Strip, and the commencement of reconstruction" in the territory.

At least 1,691 people have been killed in Gaza since the military resumed its offensive, bringing the total death toll since the war erupted to at least 51,065, according to the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza.

Hamas's attack on Israel resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures.

- 'No food' -

Hayya also called on the international community to "intervene immediately and exert the necessary pressure to end the unjust blockade imposed on our people in the Gaza Strip".

The United Nations warned on Monday that Gaza is facing its most severe humanitarian crisis since the war began.

In a statement, the UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said no supplies had reached Gaza for a month and a half.

"There is no food. So it is an alternative for other sources of protein," he said.

Israel's Defence Minister Israel Katz on Wednesday said the country would keep blocking humanitarian aid from entering Gaza as a means of pressuring Hamas.

The blockade comes as Israel transforms large swathes of Gaza into buffer zones, displacing hundreds of thousands of Palestinians.

An AFP calculation based on maps issued by the military found that the total area under Israeli control was more than 185 square kilometres (about 70 square miles), or around 50 percent of the territory.

H.Takahashi--JT